Double & Decade Movie (Spoiler Review)

Warning! This is the Spoiler Review of the Double & Decade movie. That means spoilers. Lots of 'em. Tread carefully.


Kamen Rider x Kamen Rider Double & Decade: Movie Great War 2010


This is it! The ending we've all been waiting for since the DecaDriver closed in on Natsumi's yelling face. The beginning we've all been wanting to see since Double had his first explosive transformation. The movie that brings together the Riders of 2009 for the first time... again.

Because this is a 3-part movie, I will be reviewing it 3 parts, albeit all in one post. Remember, this is the full, spoiler-filled version, so this is the last chance to turn back!

Kamen Rider Decade: Final Chapter

Following a Decade series-style recap of the Rider War and bits of the final episodes, we are thrown full-force into the nightmarish reality of Decade running amok.

Skyrider soars above while Super-1 & Kabuto search on the ground in some scummy-looking warehouse old area (about 75% of this film will take place in scummy-looking old warehouse areas.) They're looking for Decade, but the big D finds them, first destroying Skyrider with his Final Attack Ride kick despite the green guy's attempts to shake him. He plummets to the ground in flames, leaving a crater with only his Kamen Ride Card left.

Okay, hold up. Decade destroys Skyrider? Skyrider? My Skyrider? Not a very good way to begin, movie.

Supes and Kabby are next on the hit list when Decade uses Clock Up, knocking Super-1 around. Kabuto tries to Clock Up and counter this, but Decade beats him with his own gimmick and destroys both Riders with a single kick (going through Super-1 as he's airborne and into Kabuto.) The result is that they get blown to bits; we see one of Super-1's arms detached, and I don't mean in the detachable 5 Hands kind of way! Kabuto's horn has also been thrown clear and a ticked-off-looking Tsukasa picks it up, tossing it aside as he grips the Super-1 & Kabuto cards. Tsukasa has become the destroyer as prophesied.

Unfortunately that's the easiest scene to remember chronologically because it comes first. There's a lot more in the next half-hour, so I may go out of order but I'll try to cover everything.

Natsumi and Eijirô are in the Hikari Photo Studio, which is now out in the middle of the woods apparently. Natsumi laments Tsukasa's turn to the dark side, as well as the loss of Yuusuke, currently amped up on evil Kivaara juice and out looking to kick some Decade butt. There's a nice flashback to when they were all still friends. Eijirô is still pouring coffee for four, not able to get used to the idea that they're not coming back. Daiki shows up, seeming remarkably casual considering the last time we saw him he shot Decade in the face. About that...

I should probably say it here and now: it's implied there's been some time between the end of the series and this movie. What happened during that, unfortunately, is left up to the audience to ponder, because we don't see it. We can assume that Decade beat up the 9 other Riders because some of them are still gunning for him, and some of them are nowhere to be seen. But we don't see anything actually following immediately after the last scene in episode #31. Which, to be fair, is something Kamen Rider has done before, and it didn't work very well then either (Hibiki finale, and there's a great fight scene near the end of Faiz where they just sort of skipped from everyone getting beat up to Kusaka stumbling around.)

Anyway, the backdrop has changed from the Rider War World to A-Bunch-Of-Worlds-Colliding World, because that's apparently all there is now- Decade traversing and destroying the worlds, wiping the floor with nearly 40 years of justice!

And he's still doing that. Tsukasa gets confronted by Riotroopers and eeeeeeeeeeevil Yuusuke, who... wait for it... vows to destroy him. To back that statement up, a gigantic foot then comes down outside the parking garage they're in. Guess who, kids!

Natsumi and Daiki take Tsukasa's remaining photos and decide to burn them, wanting to purge the bad memories of their now-evil friend. A rather neat touch is we see a photograph from Kuuga World which is still fading away, plus some of the pictures of those thugs from episode #1. Natsumi has a hard time bringing herself to destroy Tsukasa's camera though. They're interrupted when they see the massive Kamen Rider J appear in the distance.

Tsukasa becomes Decade, now with a new, messed-up evil-looking face. J chases Decade, the gianormous Rider, being slow but powerful, nearly crushes the other Rider several times. Natsumi and Daiki join Yuusuke and watch on as Decade battles J, using G4's Gigant missle launcher and then Side Basshar's crazy million-missile attack to bring down the big guy, turning him into a card.

Somewhere around this point, we get a strange scene where Eijirô goes to a roadside food stall at night, waiting for a "Ryû-chan". The man running the stall serves him squid and beer... ahaha, get it? This joke again. Eijirô somehow remembers All Riders vs. Daishocker happening, and the cape flies down onto him as he becomes the newly powered-up Super Doctor Shinigami!

The guy running the food stall is none other than Narutaki, who apparently has gone even more completely bonkers and decided that to destroy Decade, he'll join Daishocker and become... Colonel Zol! No, I have no idea how that even works. He just puts on the eye patch and the military duds, dusts off the riding crop, and there you go. He also does a nice homage to the original's first scene, telling a Shocker goon to straighten his belt buckle (prompting everyone to check to make sure theirs are in order, including the monsters who don't even have one.)

On top of that, Daishocker is now being reformed as Super Shocker. Because... well, Bandai Fashion can sell some new T-Shirts to suckers like me, I guess. A ton of henchmen and old monsters, led by the new Hachi-Onna, show up to welcome (back) the bosses. And they're going to take over the world(s), because Decade's rampage has pretty much left them ripe for the picking.

Tsukasa gets accosted by more Riotroopers, but a bubbly young girl comes to his aid (though he says he's not even interested in fighting them. Diss!) The girl is Misaki Yuriko, or as she soon becomes, Electro-Wave Human Tackle! She kicks the 'troopers butts. So the Smart Brain elite special forces get beat up by a 14-year-old. I think the Riotroopers have now had enough losses to give the Zectroopers some competition in the "Most Embarassing Defeat" department.

Tsukasa seems uninterested in Yuriko, who has been following him around, egging him on. I think she reminds him too much of his sister. Remember her, Tsukasa? Remember All Riders? This movie does at times, and doesn't at others. It's weird. Anyway, Tsukasa and Yuriko run into Natsumi, who is helping an injured Yuusuke (he nearly became an Onodera pancake under J's corpse.)

Obviously Yuusuke wants to fight. Natsumi tries to appeal to whatever good might still be left in Tsukasa, even taking a picture of him with his camera. Which he soon chucks into the bushes. He's not interested in being anything other than what fate has made him: the destroyer. His reasoning is interesting: it's a mix of a man who has been made to do terrible things, and yet he's also blaming everyone else for making him what he is. Yuriko leads him away, and Yuusuke follows. Natsumi searches for his camera, which is busted up pretty bad. Kivaara appears and reminds her of Narutaki's words: only she can stop Decade.

Super Doctor Shinigami and Hachi-Onna are looking over some pool of green liquid. Yup, it's the Neo Organism from Kamen Rider ZO. You know, that creepy stop-motion kiddie? Now CGI! I'll get back to this later, but in ZO, that kid was seriously messed-up, but also tragic in a twisted kinda way. Here it's just annoying as @#$% and you'll be waiting for it to die. It calls Shinigami and Hachi-Onna "Papa" and "Mama", which doesn't quite have the same resonance as calling Sasaki Isao "Papa" and having a "brother" in the form of ZO. On the up side though, we get some insane nonsensical Shinigami babbling, like he had in episode #49 of the original series. You don't forget the good moments.

While Yuriko refuses to leave him alone, Tsukasa is looking over his card collection in a scummy-looking warehouse old area, and in a nice bit of foreshadowing comes across a blanked-out card of a hat-wearing Rider he's never met. Daiki shows up to try and steal the cards. Well, what were you expecting he'd do? Okay, he's also still trying to talk down Tsukasa. I guess that "Only I can kill you!" thing fell through. There's some neat talk about Yuriko here, where she says that she's going along with Tsukasa because of how she has been "forgotten." Daiki remembers her, and is sure that she's dead. Yuriko doesn't seem to remember, though we do soon see in a flashback though that she fell to Hachi-Onna's blade. But she's alive! So what's the deal?

Things get kind of fuzzy at this point, but Tsukasa ends up in a fight with Ryuki and Blade (voiced by Tsubaki Takayuki! Though it's mostly screaming.) In a pretty cool moment, Decade kills Ryuki by turning Blade into the Blade Blade, then when he's finished he throws Blade against a wall and kills him too. Okay, I guess it's not really that cool considering two of my favorite Riders just got blown to bits, but that's basically been this movie so far: Decade killing the Riderverse. Just roll with it, it'll pay off in the end. Sorta.

Yuusuke shows up, and apparently he's the last remaining Rider. Yeah, who would have thunk it? I'm guessing that, like the tourney in All Riders and that throwaway line from Stronger, Rider 1 & 2 are back in "legendary" mode and didn't cross paths with Decade (I didn't spot their cards in his collection, though I'll have to look again.) Because there's no way he'd still be eating hard food if he'd gone a few rounds with them.

Anyway, Yuusuke does a weird levitating Henshin. I guess it's supposed to be like what he did in episode #2, except instead of levitating everything else, he does it to himself. Okay! He becomes black-eyed Ultimate Form. It's creepy hearing Kuuga at his worst talking about protecting the smiles and all that jazz. Or maybe it's a testament to how good Yuusuke still is, deep down. Or maybe it's just ignoring how Kuuga works, I dunno. Anyway, they fight, and Kuuga becomes Ultimate Gouram. Yes, he goes FFR all on his own. Gripping Decade in his mandibles, they fly out over a bay, while Decade hacks at him with his sword. They crash land and Ultimate Gouram explodes, becoming a card.

Decade has done it. He's beaten all the Riders and completed his Ganbaride collection! destroyed all hope. Almost. Natsumi steps up to the plate and summons Kivaara, transforming in the most heart-fueled Henshin scene I've ever seen. Seriously, it's kinda like Double's, if he had pink hearts flying around him. Anyway, Kamen Rider Kivaara takes out her sword and fights Decade. Surprisingly, he completely throws the fight, letting her slash away at him and finally stab him right through the DecaDriver! Holy cow!

Tsukasa falls, and Kivaraa reverts to Natsumi. He gives her the cards, telling her that he's done it. For as it turns out, he technically didn't destroy the Riders. By turning them into cards, they basically still exist as memories. And as long as some one remembers them, they can be restored. So in a very, very, very, very, very roundabout way, Tsukasa was saving them by destroying them. Uh, sorta. Daiki shows up, and then a giant transdimensional cone comes out of Tsukasa, warping Natsumi and Daiki to that night time place where "original" Wataru is.

He proceeds to spout off a massive infodump about how his speech in the first episode is all coming to pass. There must be destruction for there to be creation, rebirth from the ashes, like a phoenix, etc. The short version is that Decade fulfilled his purpose: destroying everything, connecting everything, and now recreating everything. It turns out all the destroyed worlds have been restored, and all the destroyed Riders are back as well. Wataru shows them visions of a confused Yuusuke at Ai's grave. Asumu meets Todoroki and Amaki, and the other Wataru greets IXA and Saga. "The stories have been restored."

Ah yes, the stories. This is where I mentioned in my shorter first impression post that the movie gets meta. Basically they all but break the fourth wall here, talking about the Rider worlds as "stories" which have now been renewed. Natsumi wants to know how Decade fits in, and Wataru says "Decade has no story", which I'm sure the show's critics are going to take as having double-meaning. What I think he means though is that Decade is basically an anomaly from a storytelling point of view: he is defined entirely by what he's needed to be: savior, hero, villain, destroyer... and now he's nothing.

Natsumi and Daiki are soon back in reality, not quite sure if this is how it was supposed to go. Ultimately Tsukasa isn't evil; he's just at the mercy of a higher power (the writers, though they don't actually say that. But it's true!) What's more, they find it hard to remember him... they remember him, but they don't really remember him. However, Natsumi remembers the cards. And even though they destroyed all their memories of Tsukasa, there's still that one picture she took of him with his camera.

Unfortunately, Super Shocker attacks. Natsumi recognizes Zol as being Narutaki, who wants to "take you to meet grandpa". Daiki fights off everybody while Natsumi runs to get the camera. Ambushed by more Super Shocker goons, Yuusuke appears out of nowhere on Trychaser. He too still remembers Tsukasa, just a little, and wants to help restore him. He fends off the bad guys while Natsumi goes to get the camera.

Unfortunately Hachi-Onna shows up, but Tackle appears for a rematch. Despite being stabbed through the shoulder, Tackle uses the Ultra Cyclone, severely damaging Hachi-Onna, who stumbles off. Tackle reveals that she's been acting as a sort of spiritual guide for Tsukasa, guiding him on the way to restoring the worlds. And now it's his friends' turn to restore him. She vanishes away as light. I wouldn't call it a death so much as an "until next time" moment. So yeah. Tackle is the Kamen Rider Guardian Angel. I kinda like that idea.

Hachi-Onna goes back to the pool, where the Neo Organism is almost complete. It just needs a little something more... and in a scene I rolled my eyes at, it eats Hachi-Onna. This is stupid because 1) Hachi-Onna is a much cooler villain than it, and 2) it doesn't work that way, Yonemura! Anyway this somehow results in Doras, who appears in silver CGI ball form for a second. Super Shinigami saw all this happen and is actually scared by Doras, which is pretty weird.

I mean, really? Doctor Shinigami is hardcore! He'd cut up his best friends for science (and in a Hirayama book, he did!) I know this version is supposed to be more comical than really evil, and ultimately (as we'll see) he's also kind of involuntary, but come on now. If this were the Amamoto version, Doras would be seriously wishing he could be anywhere else, even Kamen Rider World.

Natsumi develops the photographs, but because the camera was busted up, they come out messed up, with Tsukasa's face gone. Outside, she holds it up, trying to remember Tsukasa. Yuusuke and Daiki hold it as well, and then we get little pan-around shots of the AU Riders Tsukasa met: Wataru, Asumu, Sôji, Shinji, Kazuma, Shôichi. No, I dunno where Takumi or Momotaros are, and it'd probably be asking too much for anyone else. But let's just assume they all remember Tsukasa as well. And so, giant moving photos of him appear before our heroes, merging together bit-by-bit into the form of a man who walks towards them. Forming into... Tsukasa.

Okay, honestly? I loved this scene. I'm sure a lot of people won't, because it's incredibly silly: Tsukasa's friends' memories of him become giant photos which merge together to resurrect Tsukasa. But at the same time, it's sort of beautiful. It's a literal reading of "A man is the sum of his memories, A Time Lord even more so". I like the idea that someone can always exist as long as someone, anyone remembers them. In Tsukasa's case, enough people remembered him to make him whole again. After hitting rock-bottom, he's back to the old Tsukasa we know and love.

This is about the point where the Decade portion of the movie runs out of plot. No really, the set-up for the final battle is pretty much this: Super Shocker cheer on as their new and improved big Super Crisis Fortress lifts off, and then the good guys pull up behind them and they throw down.
I mean okay, I guess the plot is "Decade & friends decide to settle things once and for all with Shocker", that's enough. Tsukasa, Yuusuke, Daiki, and Natsumi become Decade, Kuuga, Diend and Kivaara, and it's go time.

The Riders made short work of the Super Shocker hordes with their finishers (Kivaara's has her growing wings and slashing through guys) and I even like how the explosions are all quick-cuts, very old-fashioned. Doras shows up and sends them flying though. He also accidentally knocks over Zol, who becomes Narutaki again (Huh?) and lets rip with an "Onore Decade-o!" and that's it for him (Wha?)

The 9 Heisei Riders show up, led by Asumu and Wataru. They're the AU versions, BTW. The kiddies transform and all the Riders go up against Doras, who actually does quite well against them... until Decade goes Complete, turns everybody into their strongest forms, and they all hit him with their finishers. You can guess what happens next.

But wait, what's this? Annoying Neo Organism kid apparently drives the Super Crisis thingamajig now, and drops a giant Mammoth Mecha on everyone. Decade is thrown into the air as explosions go off all around him, and this part ends as the DecaDriver closes in around him...

Review

As should be obvious from my summary of this part of the movie, 1) it's so jam-packed that remembering everything (especially after the next part) wasn't easy, and 2) there's a lot left to be desired. Don't get me wrong, it's still a ton of fun... but that's really the thing. It's a fun old romp, but not exactly what we were all waiting for I think.

The discontinuity with the end of the series is hard to overlook. I was thinking we'd get the cold opening with Decade tearing up the Riderverse, and then a flashback later on showing us what happened right after #31. No such luck. Even less forgivable is that the scenes from the "preview" at the end of the last episode aren't in the movie. No Other Decade, no evil-looking guy on the beach, no Kuuga holding up an exploding Diend, or Natsumi packin' heat. And the scene where Narutaki jumps on Decade and threatens to reveal his true form? Ha! We should have been so lucky.

To some degree, this is a huge letdown. I know the trailers sometimes have stuff that gets cut or winds up in the Director's Cut, but the whole trailer? That's pushing it even for me. There are attempts to still give Decade a proper resolution though, but how well those work will depend on how literal you like things to be.

As I've mentioned, the metafictional ideas like the Rider "stories" and characters surviving on as "memories", I actually really like. After this movie, it feels like the "original" Wataru isn't really Wataru at all, but more of an omniscient guiding force. Why is it in the form of Wataru? Because he was the Rider story before Decade, so "he" sets the next guy on his destined path, even if it's not actually him.

I'm partial to this idea because I have a similar one for a certain story I'm still writing, though there it's the intent all along, whereas here I've got the feeling that when Aikawa wrote Wataru into episode #1, he meant for it to be the Wataru. And when Yonemura had him become Kiva in #31, he meant for it to be the Wataru. So what happened?

Well, between the trailer business and what I just said above, I wouldn't be surprised if it turned out they didn't actually know how to properly end Decade, and as of this movie they still don't. In part because Decade's format allows for it to go on as long as there's still places to go and people to see. And also because, let's face it, whenever a show changes lead writers, it's going to end up differently than it began, unless the first guy was hovering over the second guy's back for the rest of the series, telling him what to write.

Obviously as a final story that answers all the questions, this doesn't hit all the marks. It does answer some things, mainly "Who is Decade?" And the answer to that is that Decade is whatever he needs to be. This makes it an interesting bookend to All Riders, which asked "Who is Tsukasa". To be honest, I'm having a lot of trouble seeing how they could possibly work together, even though this movie implies that All Riders might've happened, maaaaybe... but not quite like that.

You can argue either way, but I think it's once again a case of Toei not knowing where to stop. They said All Riders was "the end of Decade's story", then we got that cliffhanger ending and now this, which is another ending... sort of. You'll understand what I mean when I get to the third part of this movie.

So that brings me back to the "fun" thing. To jump ahead a bit, the Double portion of the movie has a much tighter plot, though mostly keeps it within the boundaries of Double. Decade's has the advantage of being able to use a lot more Rider lore, so even if the entire thing doesn't quite hang together, there's a lot of good bits in there just the same.

The action's great as usual with Decade. It's more uncomfortable than ever because it's largely Rider-on-Rider violence, and the deaths are fairly graphic, with Riders really exploding, chunks and all. Don't expect a gore-fest, but I wasn't thinking I'd ever see Kabuto's big 'ol head horn blown off.

The effects are what you'd expect in a Toei movie these days, i.e. great when they're practical, not so much when they're CG, though to be fair there's some good CG here. And if nothing else, I have to admire the ambition. The Decade-vs.-J scene is wicked, and the Super Crisis Fortress looks great. The Neo Organism less so, but that's the least of the thing's problems.

The music's a mix of TV, All Riders, and some new stuff. I'll talk more about it in the reviews for the other parts.

Onto the characters. Tsukasa's not at his finest at all, but that's more to do with how he's written, that being as a complete bastard. Inoue does what he can, but I think Tsukasa works best when he's confident and a bit of a wise-ass, but still fallible and willing to play with the team when things get serious (re: Kuuga World.) There's some good Decade action though, and the messed-up-mask version is suitably sinister.

For most of this thing Inoue's on cruise-control, but then everybody kind of is. Yuusuke had a better emotional arc in All Riders, whereas here he just kind of goes from foe to friend with a little universe-mucking. But there's no real big "Sorry, Tsukasa." "Sorry, Yuusuke" moment, no really clear resolution for them. He gets to use both Ultimate and Rising Ultimate Form briefly, but otherwise it's just Mighty this time. Daiki's still Daiki, but at least he's more like end-of-series/All Riders Daiki. I don't remember Diend doing a whole lot until the final battle, to be honest.

Natsumi gets some good stuff, with her being torn up over her friends and playing a pivotal role in restoring Tsukasa. And Kamen Rider Kivaara rocks. I like that for all the silliness (the hearts, being a Rider who transforms with freakin' Kivaara) the movie takes her seriously, and she gets to kill Decade! That's pretty neat. It's a good costume too. I like my female Riders more of the Tackle/Femme variety (or *cough*you-know-who*cough*) but it's nifty and would have been cool to see more of her alongside Kiva.

As you can glean from the summary, trying to figure out how Eijirô/Shinigami and Narutaki/Zol work is... well, you can't. We do get a bit more Shinigami action in the third part of the movie, but this is it for Narutaki. So in the end, who is he? Despite becoming Zol, it seems like that's just it: he becomes Zol, but he isn't *really* Zol. There's no Ookami-Otoko, which is a cryin' shame. It really seems to be more of a gag than anything else, which is too bad.

That worked in All Riders with Shinigami because you also had a "serious" villain in the form of Shadow Moon, plus they went the full 9 yards with the "ika de biiru" joke by actually having the squid man himself. Here, not so much. Okuda's acting as Zol is actually pretty good and he got down the mannerisms, if a bit more theatrical than the original (Miyaguchi could be terrifying just by smiling; Okuda's more over-the-top.) But still, in the end, who is Narutaki? A guy who really, really hates Decade? An allegory for angry internet fan? Satan? I dunno.

I've complained about the Neo Organism a lot, so I'll do it some more. Don't worry, this isn't the next Chiharu or anything, but man... the original ZO version was weird and disturbing, but made sense in the context of the story. Plus if anything it was more of a voice for Doras. Here it's more of a character in its own right, with Doras being just kind of a "here I made this for you" thing.

Somehow it merges/takes over the giant flying base, and we're subjected to a sarcastic "Let's play!" and "Let's have more fun!" every few minutes. Which would be fine coming out of the mouth of a bad-ass classic monster or sexy villainess. But not the creepy CGI kid, guv. Anything but that. I guess I'm just kind of puzzled because they made a big deal over how Doras is the STRONGEST KAIJIN EVER!!1!™, then kill him off rather easily, while we're subjected to the chatty Neo Organism for the rest of the fight, and then again in Part 3.

Also, it's still weird how Doras was just there in All Riders, one of the boys, and suddenly he's important again. He looks great, though doesn't have nearly as many cool powers as the original and his rather average human grunts lack the creepiness of the ZO version. I guess after Shadow Moon, he's the next big "Anti-Rider" type of guy, but where are my Shocker Riders? I cannot believe we've had two Decade movies with no Daishocker/Super Shocker Riders!

Hachi-Onna's cool though. Shame about her death, but I like her when she's around. I do think the costume's a step down compared to the original, and that's saying a lot. But really, the classic one at least had that inhuman face paint and a better-fitting mask. The new one just looks like someone wearing a costume, which isn't so bad if you read the latest New Type THE LIVE where we see the actress sans mask, with some nice yellow/blue streaks in her hair.

My guess is this was supposed to work like the Kaijin in THE FIRST and THE NEXT, but never really played up. But enough with the griping. It's Hachi-Onna! She was due for a return, and I like how they made her Tackle's rival... again, I would have changed it so Tackle finished her off in the end, instead of getting eaten by bad CG.

And speaking of Tackle... she's great. I wasn't sure how she'd turn out when I saw the first pictures, because Okada's a haaaaaaaaaaaaaard act to follow. Fortunately, Hirose's version is basically taking the character in a new direction, while still feeling like Tackle (it probably helps that she reportedly watched Stronger to prepare.) Yuriko's spunky and cheerful, but actually in a very genuine way, much like the original. Too bad she had to be paired up with eeeeeeevil Inoue, I think she'd have worked better around a regular, good guy Tsukasa unaccustomed to dealing with girl Riders.

She's also a bit haunted, which is good. I sort of wish they had just popped on some Stronger footage for the "death" flashback and made her a full-on reincarnation of the original, because the dialogue strongly hints at it. The whole idea of Tackle being this "forgotten one" who is now back as an agent of a greater universal power. Sort of reality's way of setting things right. Like I said, it's a neat idea for the character, who really deserves more credit than she gets. Although I would have liked a Stronger appearance, it's also sort of cool to have Tackle be her own character, unrestrained by her more famous partner.

As for the costume, it's a good update. I've always liked Tackle as a design, though felt she worked best on the page, where you can get the proportions of the helmet just right (it should be less of a helmet and more of an tight-fitting actual mask, I think. See the Spirits version.) I really like that they took a page from the FIRST/NEXT universe, able to just take her helmet off whenever. And like Okada, she's waaaaaaaaaaaay younger than you'd think.

Her transformation involves saying her name, which is different, but she gets the Rider eye glow and the proper effects. And it's good to see the old moves back. Ultra Cyclone isn't as radical as its Spirits reinvention, but hey... they gotta leave some things for me to take a swing at!

The AU guys... don't do much, but they're there, mostly. In case you missed them.

And that's really the cast! Everybody else is a stock Rider or monster. The inclusion of the Shôwa Riders is actually something I'm split on. On the one hand, hell yeah. The more the merrier! Plus, the movie has classic villains and is a Shocker, so there should be some old Riders. On the other hand, Skyrider and Super-1 might as well have just been two Heisei Riders (J you can overlook because he is Heisei, technically.) Skyrider got some kickass flying scenes though, and I even heard the classic sound effects in there!

I do like that they remembered that Decade's actions effect all the Rider worlds, though. But man... Skyrider? It's like Toei was trying to go out of their way to make me not like the movie! :P It's nice to see more old monsters back, from Shôwa and Heisei alike. What's up with having Hiru-Chameleon but no Black Shôgun though? To quote the man himself "GIIIIIIIIIIIIAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRGH!"

Oh, and Kivaraa uses the thumb 'o doom (well, sword handle 'o doom) on a Shocker guy. I'm sure someone was waiting for that.

Kamen Rider Double: Begins Night

It's Christmas time in the city of Futo. Shôtarô remembers back to the days when it was just him and Oyassan, Narumi Sôkichi. The boss was a tough. He was unrelenting in his criticism, but in the end he was a good man. And back then, he didn't think Shôtarô was ready to wear the hat yet...

Shôtarô is awoken from his day dream by Akiko, telling him to get back to helping them decorate. It's Christmas time in the city of Futo, once again. The Irregulars are over, helping to plan out their Christmas party. Philip is in his own world, reading. The usual bickering and squabbling between Shôtarô and Akiko draws in everyone else, and is only stopped when a girl walks in looking for the detective agency.

She is Mutsuki Asami, and she needs help. She's been seeing her sister Erika, the other half of their singing duo, appear before her at random. The problem is, Erika is dead. A Ghost of Christmas Past? Shôtarô agrees to take the case. Philip too is intrigued, seeking the logical explanation.

So our heroes hit the streets. The Futo Irregulars help in tracking down the clues. Shôtarô and co. decide to question Father Robert Shijima, the caretaker of Erika's grave. He seems suspicious, but why? Chasing a ghost soon turns out to be as hard as it sounds.

The Sonozaki family are having their own little pre-Christmas party. Ryuubei holds Mick while Saeko and Wakana chat nearby. Admidst all this, Kirihiko eyes Ryuubei suspiciously. Some time ago, he saw the old man chatting with another old man at a roadside food stall. And apparently, a Gaia Memory was exchanged...

Shôtarô and Akiko find Erika, which surprises them both. Seeing as how she's dead and all. A ghost? A zombie? They don't have time to find out because they are soon attacked by the spectral Death Dopant. Shôtarô calls to Philip, and they both transform together to become Kamen Rider Double, Cyclone Joker. Double battles with Death, who claims to have the power to animate the dead... well, case solved! But not quite, as the good guys are in for another surprise. Double goes to Cyclone Trigger, and blasts away the monster. But then...

Oyassan appears. Despite the fact that Shôtarô saw him die with his very own eyes. Or so it seemed. Oyassan produces the Skull Memory, slotting it into the Lost Driver belt. He becomes the dark, scarf-clad hat-wearing Kamen Rider Skull.

Double and Skull duke it out, the latter having his own Skull Magnum. Shôtarô has trouble even facing his old boss, while Philip reminds him that Narumi Sôkichi is dead... a revelation to his daughter, Akiko. Double goes to Luna Trigger to try and shoot around Skull, but the older Rider proves more than a match. Double is taken out and Skull, reverting back to Oyassan, warns him against investigating further.

Shôtarô finds himself in a hard spot, as does Akiko, who up until now hadn't known the truth. The cops stop by to help out, but Shôtarô's heart isn't in investigating right now (there's a nice bit where he pretty much lets slip that he's Kamen Rider, and they laugh it off... uh guys, did you ever look at the bike?) Philip's still rarin' to go though, but first he has to make his partner feel the same way.

With a bouquet of flowers, Shôtarô heads out to the island where he and Philip escape from, so long ago... the last place he and Oyassan were together. He is surprised to find Philip, who took the HardSplasher. The two decide that if they're going to figure out why Narumi Sôkichi is back among the living, they need to know what exactly happened on that night. The Begins Night.

1 year ago.

As it turns out, it's pretty much what we saw in episode #1, with a few extra things. Shôtarô and Oyassan snuck in to find and rescue the "Child of Fate". Oyassan brought along a suitcase which he gives to Shôtarô, telling him not to move, not even one step. He then goes out to confront some goons, and a fight breaks out. One of them (Who I'm pretty sure is long-time stuntman Okamoto Jirô) pulls out a Masquerade Gaia Memory, and his fellow thugs do the same, turning into skeletal-faced monsters. Oyassan becomes Kamen Rider Skull, and continues the fight. The Taboo Dopant shows up, blasting at Skull with energy balls, putting a slice in his hat.

Despite Oyassan's warning, Shôtarô sees a pajama-clad youth stalk around the corner, and decides to go after him, deducing it to be the guy they're after. And guess who it is? Philip, who is somehow involved in the creation of the Gaia Memories. But his technobabble makes no sense to Shôtarô, who just wants to know how guilty he is. In a scuffle, he drops the case, which turns out to contain the Double Driver and the Gaia Memories. Philip is impressed with the workmanship, and that someone has developed a system which he can use to.

Shôtarô is getting tired of Philip's cryptic talk about "riding with the Devil" and all that, but things take a nasty turn when Philip is pushed into some sort of teleportation chamber, which transmits him right into the central crystal of the "Memory Tower".

Oyassan is ticked off with Shôtarô for disobeying him, but they need to hurry because now the whole building's on high alert. They go to the central chamber, where Philip is...

This is about the point where we came in on TV. But a few more interesting details are revealed. Oyassan touched the crystal holding Philip first, and entered into the strange data world of book shelves that Philip goes into all the time. It was he who named him Philip, after a favorite fictional character. He also told him of how he had to help make amends for his crimes (his involvement with the Gaia Memories.)

Also, upon dying, Oyassan places his hat on Shôtarô, asking him to take care of "that child." Shôtarô, feeling he has not yer earned the hat, blames himself for the events surrounding Oyassan's death. Back in the present, Philip remarks at how they both have to count their own crimes.

The final segment of the Begins Night flashback shows how Double escaped. As everything exploded around him, he fell through the floor, but is helped by the small robotic dinosaur-like Fang Memory (who catches Philip.) Once they land, they de-transform, and Philip wants to see just how well the Fang Works.

He puts it into his own belt while Shôtarô uses the Joker Memory. But this time, Shôtarô passes out while Philip becomes the wild Fang Joker form of Double. Using his feral fighting techniques and a detachable blade weapon (which appears on his wrist and shoulder) he makes short work of the remaining henchmen Dopants, and they escape.

With the past events worked out, the guys have a new resolve, and proceed to work out the case as usual, with Philip doing his book-searching and Shôtarô doing some number-crunching. I'll have to watch the movie again because there's this thing about the number 19 that I missed, but apparently it ties back to an offhand comment the priest guy made... long story short, they figure out it was the priest dude.

Asami and Akiko are investigating that very guy. Indeed, Shijima is behind the resurrections, as he's got a room full of coffins and dead bodies! Or is it that simple?

Shôtarô and Philip show up, but Shijima becomes the Death Dopant and vanishes. Oyassan appears, becoming Skull. Shôtarô confronts him, calling him out for not being the real thing. He knew Narumi Sôkichi, and this guy ain't him. There's a really cool moment where he punches Skull, and as you think would happen, Shôtarô gets some pretty bloody knuckles. But he makes his point. Akiko believes this guy couldn't be her father. Shôtarô and Philip dramatically transform into Kamen Rider Double!

With a clearer conscious, Double is more than a match for Skull. He changes to Heat Joker and knocks the other Rider down... where he changes back into Shijima... and then Death Dopant... and then Erika... and many other things, finally becoming the gray, blank-faced Dummy Dopant. Philip notes that there never was a Death Dopant; it's just a guise of the shape-shifting Dummy. Even Akiko is unimpressed by the true form of the culprit.

Not wanting to miss a chance to smack down some Double, the Sonozaki clan show up and it becomes a 4-on-1 as Nazca, Taboo and Clay Doll join in. Double goes to Heat Metal and fights his way through the high-level Dopants. The cowardly Dummy decides to hoof it, and, changing to the form of a tire, takes off. Double calls for RevolGarry, and takes off in hot pursuit on HardBoiler...

Review

I haven't talked about Double much here, or anywhere, because to be honest so far the show has fallen into that odd realm where it's very good, but I just can't get excited about it. There's nothing particularly wrong with it, at least nothing that that other Rider shows aren't afflicted with, and yet so far it's just sort of been there, doing its thing, but watching it feels more like a weekly habit than something to be excited about.

Part of the reason for this is that it's coming after Decade, which, like it or hate it, is a show that got attention. And it got my attention, owed to the fact that I really really like it. After a couple years of Rider shows which were good, but aimed more at other people than they were at me, here's a show which knew how to press the right buttons, the way Blade or Agito did. I don't think Decade was perfect, but even at its worst it always had me interested in what was going on. That's a hard thing to pull off.

Double on the other hand has been a perfectly fine little show, but it's only the recent episodes that I've really started to get into it. Perhaps I need to go back to the beginning again, because there are a few episodes I've watched once and that's it (usually I'll at least do a repeat viewing.)

The big exception to all this is the opening moments of the first episode. I loved that. It was like, movie-quality on TV. While Decade still has the cold opening to beat, Double's is very, very good. So of course I was excited at the prospect of a movie that went further into that scene.

I just didn't expect it to be this good.

If I'm a bit scant on the summary of this one, it's partly because it's hard to remember everything in a movie with such a distinct 3-act structure, and also because it's really the sort of story you should just sit down and watch yourself, when you get the chance (which sadly won't be for a while for most, but hey, you'll have something very good to look forward to.)

Really, what we have here is a perfectly good little adventure tale. It fits into the Double series (somehow) and provides a wealth of back story, but it's also a pretty strong tale on its own (though you'll need to see the rest of the movie for the full effect, since it does end with us still hanging.)

To really sum it up, I felt that Begins Night could have been a movie all on its own, and I'd have been happy with it. Though actually, the fact that it's not much longer than a regular episode and part of a bigger movie works to its advantage. It's well-paced and breezes on by, yet doesn't feel rushed.

It's sort of like everything I'd want the TV show to be. I think it can be, as the show starts digging more into its own history. In my initial thoughts, I said that when Double got serious, that's when it got really good. Such is the case here. It literally gets "Hard-Boiled".

It helps that the situation's personal. Oyassan is a character tied to all three of the leads, so they're all really getting involved this time. The weight of the situation can be felt, and even though at the end of the day it's a pretty upbeat Christmas-flavored tale, you do get that sense where this time, they're really in trouble, and the situation's going to be bigger than they can handle (and sure enough, it is, as it spills over into Decade!)

In comparing this to the first part, it's definitely a much tighter story. Sanjô hadn't quite blown me away before this (my favorite episodes so far have been by one of the guest writers) but he knocks it out of the park here, especially when stacked up with Yonemura's efforts. While Final Chapter has the spectacle and the star power (Tackle! Colonel Zol! Kivaara! Doras! etc.) Begins Night wins out in being more of a well-constructed tale that builds to a satisfying end, and leaves you with a feeling of fulfillment rather than confusion.

True, the flashback does raise some new questions. Just who is Philip, anyway? What was Oyassan doing with the Double Drive in the first place? How did he become Skull? What happened to the Fang Memory (on sale this Christmas!) However, you'll get a much better picture of who Shôtarô's boss was, how he and Philip first butted heads, and what happens when you end a scene by writing "and everything explodes."

As for the specifics:

Shôtarô rules as usual. He's been my favorite thing in the show since day one. Even if everything else around him is just on cruise-control, he's always giving it his all. Like Hosokawa, Kiriyama's childhood dream of becoming a Kamen Rider has been granted, and he's really sunk his teeth into the role. I often comment about how I like each main Rider actor to bring something different. Even if it's a total 180 from the last guy, I'd rather have that than just simple repetition. Shôtarô and Tsukasa are worlds apart, but I love 'em both.

Philip is also good, with Suda playing it cranked up to 11. In his first scene, he's a creepy little weirdo, and this is just him chillin' in the detective agency! I didn't quite know what to make of Philip at first, and actually not because of the clothes, but his onscreen presence. It's like he's playing to a different audience sometimes. While Shôtarô always comes across as kid-friendly, there's something kind of weirdly psychotic about Philip, with his strange interest-swings. I could see him as the kind of guy who would run around in an undone straight jacket and demand Shôtarô and Akiko bring him lots of mustard some day. Or maybe it's just me. All the same, he's good here and his chance to be Double is well-earned.

Akiko's been a polarizing character for some, but give her some plot (involving daddy) and I find she's quite good. The slipper business is a tiresome retread of Natsumi's gimmick, and considering she's supposed to be Kansai I'm wondering why she isn't my "Character of the Year" yet. Well, aside from the fact that 2009 also gave us Tsukasa, CARAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAZY AU TheBee guy and Apollo Geist. But other than that, I like her okay, and she's great here, clearly bothered by her literal-dead-man-walking father, but not angsting about it too much. She's more clever than she appears, I think. Also, she wears the shortest skirt I've ever seen in this movie. I mean, when you're upstaging Tackle, something's going on.

Oyassan, or Narumi Sôkichi... he's about what you'd expect. Which is pretty awesome. It's good that we got a glimpse of him in episode #1, so we don't have Tendô's Grandmother Syndrome (that being, I had always assumed Tendô's Grandmother to be this grand, wise old Yoda-like figure. Then the Decade version is just a selfish old cow. Okay, so she's not Tendô's per se, and she redeems herself in the awesome ending scene. Still, that's one character that's better left unseen, to maintain the mystique.)

Uh... but back to Oyassan. He's pretty cold most of the time, but the movie wants to build it up to make you think that the Skull running around in the present really is him. When of course, it isn't. But I'll admit, I didn't see the twist coming at all, because they were smart enough not to give away the Dummy Dopant in advance (instead just labeling him as a mystery) and building up Death to be pretty much supernatural. I got to give Double this: it does freaky horror excellently. Since it, you know, ties in to the story and involves monsters that Double is actively trying to stop.

Uh... but back to Oyassan: he's cool. While I'd have been happy to see a veteran Rider actor turn up, Kikkawa's excellent, and it's probably best to have a new face take on this role. It's also nice to have another over-40 Rider. They're a rarer breed than you think (if we're just talking "age when the show was on", most of the classic guys were well under 30.)

Skull's good. I went in expecting a pretty typical movie Rider: shows up, makes an impression, dies. Has some redressed weaponry, doesn't even touch a bike. The redressed weaponry part is pretty much spot-on, but not so with the rest. Though I'll have to talk more about him in Part 3. The twist with who Skull (in the present) is was a nice little surprise. And he wears a hat. Not many Riders do that.

The other original characters in the movie are fine, with the priest guy turning in an especially creepy performance. The rest of the TV regulars get their little moments. Mick rocks of course. I have to give this movie credit for making me like the Futo Irregulars. So far on the show, I've just found them annoying and unnecessary. Really, thye could be merged into one character who fulfills all the same basic functions (informant, plot device-giver, informant... other informant.) However, put them all together like here, and they're great. They're Shôtarô's own oddball little group of friends. I suppose their brand of comedy is sort of like Otoya's, who always worked best for me when he had someone else to play off of (like Jirô.)

There's plenty of good action. Fang Joker is neat, and the new Dopant are good (though Death's voice is a lot goofier than he looks.) The Double vs. Skull scenes are great, and Skull even gets a very distinctive "TOH!" moment. The flashback stuff looks cool. With more locations than dingy old warehouses to use, there's some very good cinematography on display. The music's in line with that on the show (and most of it's probably from the show, for all I know.)

All in all, a very good time. I hope Double's own summer adventure will be this good. Of course, it's not over yet...

Movie Great War 2010

The final part of this 3-part movie brings Decade and Double together. First some split-screen action shows how Decade and friends survive the Mammoth Mecha's attack. Double pursues the Dummy Dopant (ending up in a different part of the movie, apparently.) Decade gets on Machine Decader, and soon the Riders are together on the same screen. After an awkward greeting (they know, or at least are familiar with each other) things go completely nuts.

Trying to actually tell you, step-by-step, what happens in this fight would be impossible. But basically Decade brings in the 9 Heisei Riders, and uses an All Riders Final Form Ride Card. In a neat little bit, they line up and do the "this might tickle" bit to each other, morphing from Rider to FFR. Everybody attacks the Crisis ship. Decade, Diend and Kivaraa join in. A whole bunch of other stuff joins in too... Castle Dran... I think I saw Blade Jack Form fly by. It's CG sensory overload, to be honest.

Double battles with the Mammoth thingy, now controlled by Dummy. There's some form-changing goodness and finally Double knocks the monster off and takes control, turning the robo-mammoth into Hard Mammother! Yeah. He uses this to attack the Crisis ship as well, which converts to some kind of giant robot mode and... you know what, I can't even begin to explain this one.

As the Crisis ship starts to blow up, Super Doctor Shinigami is still on board. A Gaia Memory falls out of his neck, smashing on the ground. The Shinigami Hakase Memory! He reverts to Eijirô and is saved by Kamen Rider Kivaraa, and...

Wait, what?

Shinigami Hakase Memory?


Shinigami Hakase Memory?

............................

Anyway, stuff gets destroyed and of course the damn Neo Organism has to survive, and merge with Dummy Dopant into Ultimate D... who's not really all that ultimate. You know that sword-wielding guy that Indy just shoots in 'Raiders?' This is the Riderverse version of him. Well okay, he gives Decade and Double a bit of trouble, but then Decade uses a new FFR card and splits Double into...

Cyclone Cyclone and Joker Joker (Philip and Shôtarô, respectively.) They use perform a Triple Rider Kick, and destroy Ultimade D. And finally, that damn CGI kid is dead! It's dead! Hurray!

Reverting to Shôtarô and Tsukasa, our heroes part ways. Tsukasa gives Shôtarô the mysterious card, which is of course Skull. After vanishing into a dimensional wall-thingy, Shôtarô & co. get a visit of Skull himself. The Skull of another world, according to Shôtarô, though he's basically the same as the one from his. Just not dead. Oyassan/Skull (he appears unmasked, which is cool) gives some words of encouragement and says they'll meet again, on any world. He then gets on his motorcycle and vanishes as soon as he came in another dimensional wall-thingy.

Roll credits. We get to see Tsukasa and friends prepare to continue their journey, with a new backdrop showing an endless road. Eijirô takes a picture. In Futo, Shôtarô and friends have their party, with Shôtarô narrating his desire to protect the city, forever.

At the end of the credits, a mysterious man stands under the Futo wind tower. He says that there's more than one Rider in Futo, and throws a red Gaia Memory up into the air.

"ACCEL!"

Review

Well, what more can I say? The first two acts of the movie collide in a huge-ass battle. Throw all semblance of plot and logic out the window, and enjoy the spectacle. Everything is blown up, everything is tied up (more or less) and our heroes part ways, though I'm sure they'll meet again...

All in all this is one helluva movie. I think All Riders is still the Rider movie of 2009 because it's a more cohesive package, plus there is the whole "All Riders" thing. But this is pretty awesome too.

The 3-act structure is interesting, and the way they collide at the end is actually pretty nifty. It reminds a bit of those segments in Genealogy of Justice (everything always goes back to that) where you'd reach the end of one Rider's chapter and wouldn't get back to them until going through the other guys. Decade's literally in freeze-frame for like 40 minutes during all that Begins Night stuff!

Like I said though, there is some lack of cohesion. The Decade part was pretty weak on story, but had great action. The Double part was good all-around, and this final part was... weak on story, but had great action. But then, for something like this part, the story can be pretty minimal. Something like "Riders team up and fight evil", so in that regards it's doing all it needs to do. And to be fair, the little ending scenes and the bit with Skull are very cool.

The entire way the card thing was done was pretty neat. I liked the foreshadowing with it in Decade's part, then introducing us to the Rider in Double's part, and then bringing him back here. There's also that Eijirô-Ryuubei connection, which... doesn't make much sense, but I guess it's one way of reminding us that there is only one true Doctor Shinigami, and all others are just drug-pushing, drunken old guys. And that sounds about right. It's also nice to see that Decade remembers Tackle here.

Oh, and Gackt's Stay Alive the Ride the Decade Whatever Shamalamadingdong (Stay the Ride Alive) song is nice.

Will Toei take this approach next time? Maybe, maybe not. I'm sure we'll be seeing Double again in the movies soon, and probably Decade as well. All in all, a fun-filled action-fest. It doesn't even try to answer all your questions, but I suppose you can only seek those out so much. Sometimes you just got to sit back and watch the bug men kick things and make them explode.

***